DALÉCARLIE · STOCKHOLM · BOHUSLÄN · MODERNITY
100 works of Swedish painting
A century of painting between northern light, national narrative and abstraction
Swedish painting is not reduced to the interiors of Carl Larsson or the symbols of Hilma af Klint. These hundred works connect Hill's experimental landscape, Zorn's luminous realism, national-romanticism, Liljefors' animal observation and the avant-gardes of the 20th century.
A modernity with multiple homes
From observed landscape to visionary painting
In the second half of the 19th century, many Swedish artists trained in Paris before looking at their own territory with renewed means. Hill constructs the landscape by sensitive masses; Zorn vibrates the water, the skin and modern sociability; Pauli and Bonnier transform the interior and the portrait into places of luminous experimentation.
In Sweden, light does not only describe the season: it organizes memory, home, landscape and collective life.
From the 1890s, Bergh, Nordstrom, Kreuger, Prince Eugen and Osslund gave the territory a symbolic dimension. Larsson shapes a modern image of the home while Liljefors observes the animal as a force in its environment. Hilma af Klint, then Hjertén, Grünewald and Dardel, finally moved painting towards autonomous color, spiritual abstraction and modern anxiety.
Enter the rankingOne hundred paintings to explore Swedish art
Landscape, national history and modern life open the route with four very different conceptions of reality.
#1
The Seine, a landscape with poplars
Based in France, Hill takes up in Corot the order of plant masses and a supple touch, while avoiding the sentimental effect. The poplars, the shore and the sky form a tense construction where the observed landscape becomes the place of a deeply personal research.
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#2
The Return of the Body of King Charles XII
The funeral procession advancing in the snow has lastingly shaped the Swedish historical imagination. Cederstrom, however, combines two episodes and invents a ceremony which did not take place like this: the accuracy of the uniforms serves a constructed heroic vision, not a report.
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#3
Breakfast time
Painted in the Stockholm archipelago, this open-air cutlery is crossed by reflections which dissolve the tablecloth and objects. The touch, considered too daring by some critics in 1887, places Hanna Pauli in the impressionist renewal of Nordic light.
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#4
Reflection in blue
A young girl reads next to a bedridden woman, while the sun fragments into blues on the wall, linen and bodies. Bonnier applies outdoor discoveries indoors and refuses to reduce the patient to the sentimental stereotype of a fragile woman.
See this reproduction →Portraits, scenes from Dalarna and outdoor experiences show the virtuosity of a painter who is both local and cosmopolitan.
#5
Summer ball
The dancers rotate in the evening light like a community in motion; the popular motif becomes an emblematic image of cultural continuity in Dalarna. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#6
Our daily bread
Domestic work and daily food are viewed without idealization, but with a dignity that gives the rural gesture a social significance. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#7
The Omnibus
The forced proximity of passengers, the reflections and the faces cut by the framing reflect the new experience of the large modern city. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light that connects cosmopolitanism and Dalarna culture.
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#8
A toast to Idun
The toast of the Idun circle becomes a group portrait of the Stockholmois cultural world, animated by gestures, looks and smoke. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which connects cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#9
Emma Zorn reading
In "Emma Zorn Reading", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#10
Castles in Spain
In "Castles in Spain", the time and atmosphere determine the scene: the shapes remain readable, but the light changes their weight and meaning. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch and frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#11
Night effect
"Night effect" combines the body, water and light without a fixed outline; the flesh is constructed by reflections and by variations in colored temperature. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch and frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#12
Dalarna girls bathing
"Daughters of Dalarna in the Bath" combines the body, water and light without a fixed outline; the flesh is constructed by reflections and by variations in colored temperature. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#13
Reflections of water on a stone coffin
In "Reflections of Water on a Stone Coffin", time and atmosphere determine the scene: shapes remain readable, but light changes their weight and meaning. Zorn builds this immediacy with a touch fast, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which connects cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#14
Self-portrait in red
In "Self-portrait in Red", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch and frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#15
Prince Eugén, Duke of Närke
In "Prince Eugén, Duke of Närke", the framing, the light and the distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign story on it. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#16
Mrs Walter Rathbone Bacon
In "Mrs Walter Rathbone Bacon", the framing, light and distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign narrative on it. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#17
Portrait of Oscar II of Sweden
In "Portrait of Oscar II of Sweden", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch and contrasts francs and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#18
Isabella Stewart Gardner in Venice
In "Isabella Stewart Gardner in Venice", the framing, light and distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign narrative on it. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#19
Naked in a rocky forest
"Naked in a Rocky Forest" combines body, water and light without a fixed outline; the flesh is constructed by reflections and by variations in colored temperature. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#20
Frieda Schiff
In "Frieda Schiff", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#21
Outside
In "Outside", the time and atmosphere determine the scene: the shapes remain readable, but the light changes their weight and meaning. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#22
Summer games
In "Summer Games", the time and atmosphere determine the scene: the shapes remain readable, but the light changes their weight and meaning. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch, sharp contrasts and mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#23
Midnight
"Midnight" combines the body, water and light without a fixed outline; the flesh is constructed by reflections and by variations in colored temperature. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#24
Nymph of love
"Nymph of love" combines the body, water and light without a fixed outline; the flesh is constructed by reflections and by variations in colored temperature. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch and contrasts francs and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#25
Mona
In "Mona", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and mastery of the light that connects cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#26
Freyja
In "Freyja", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Zorn builds this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and mastery light that connects cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#27
The artist's wife
In "The Artist's Wife", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch and frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#28
sunday morning
In "Sunday Morning", the framing, the light and the distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign story on it. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch and contrasts francs and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
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#29
Flodkulla from the front
In "Front Flodkulla", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch, frank contrasts and a mastery of light that links cosmopolitanism and Dalarna culture.
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#30
Old Anne
In "Vieille Anne", the framing, the light and the distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign story on it. Zorn constructs this immediacy with a quick touch and frank contrasts and a mastery of light which links cosmopolitanism and the culture of Dalarna.
See this reproduction →Family life, portraiture and Swedish history become elements of an instantly recognizable decorative language.
#31
Self-portrait
In "Self-Portrait", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into readable images whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#32
Self-portrait in the workshop
In "Self-portrait in the Workshop", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into readable images whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#33
Brita on the piano
In "Brita on the piano", the framing, the light and the distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign story on it. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into readable images whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#34
Brita in Idun
In "Brita en Idun", the framing, the light and the distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign story on it. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into readable images whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#35
Julaftonen, or Christmas Eve
The family celebration is organized like a choral stage where light, textiles and gestures give a modern form to the ideal of the Swedish home. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into readable images whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#36
Karin and Kersti
In "Karin and Kersti", the framing, the light and the distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign story on it. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into readable images whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#37
The Swedish Renaissance
The vast historical setting connects architecture, costume and national memory; Larsson tests the monumental ambition that will culminate with his Winter Sacrifice. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into images readable whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#38
The Model writing postcards
In "The Model Writing Postcards", the framing, light and distribution of shapes give the motif a scope that goes beyond the anecdote without imposing a foreign narrative on it. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical story in readable images whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#39
Midwinter Sacrifice
King Domalde is sacrificed to ward off famine: Larsson condenses the Nordic legend into a monumental frieze, long refused by the Nationalmuseum. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into images readable whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
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#40
Portrait of Selma Lagerloef
In "Portrait of Selma Lagerlöf", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Larsson transforms family life, decor and historical narrative into readable images whose apparent simplicity is based on a very calculated layout.
See this reproduction →Pauli, Josephson, Bergh and Varberg's painters shift observation towards legend, psychology and the mental landscape.
#41
Friends
Gathered in the Pauli apartment in Stockholm, members of the Juntan circle listen to Ellen Key read under the lamp. Hanna Pauli transforms this collective portrait into a monument to friendship, but also into an image of the new Swedish cultural elite of the early 20th century.
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#42
Portrait of Jeanette Rubenson
In "Portrait of Jeanette Rubenson", the pose and gaze maintain the individuality of the model, while the quick touch avoids the rigidity of the official portrait. Josephson brings the portrait and the Nordic legend of psychological observation has an unstable vision where presence seems to arise from pictorial material.
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#43
Water Engineering
Sitting on the edge of the torrent, the Stromkarlen of Scandinavian legend plays the violin to seduce or train the listener. Refused by the Nationalmuseum, this vision where the body merges with water has become one of the major assertions of Swedish symbolism.
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#44
Nordic evening
Two figures absorbed by twilight communicate only through their silent proximity; the landscape expresses as much expectation as the Nordic season. Bergh combines portrait, landscape and twilight to transform Swedish nature into a space of memory, desire and introspection.
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#45
Landscape of Tjorn
Nordstrom reduces the coastline of Tjörn to large strips of earth, rock and sky. This serious simplification, developed within the Varberg school, makes Bohuslän less a picturesque site than a mental landscape associated with Swedish national-romanticism.
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#46
Spring in Halland
Three landscapes brought together in a sculpted frame follow the lines of plowing and the undulations of Halland. Kreuger highlights certain rhythms in ink on the painting, giving the agricultural territory a decorative stylization which defines the Varberg school.
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#47
The Cloud
A slope, a path, a few trees and a monumental cloud are enough to construct this vision of Tyresö. The painter prince condenses the real landscape into a symbolist allegory: the path disappears behind the ridge and opens the image to the uncertainty of destiny.
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#48
Autumn evening in Nordingrå
From Storberget, Osslund embraces the Ângermanälven valley in an incandescent range. The flat areas and sinuous lines, marked by Japonism and the teaching of Gauguin, transform the landscape of Norrland into a vast colorful rhythm rather than a simple topographical survey.
See this reproduction →Nocturnal Stockholm and unstable sea transform the atmosphere into a psychological experience.
#49
Riddarfjärden in Stockholm
Stockholm Bay becomes an expanse of almost monochrome blue, punctuated by urban lights whose reflections build depth. Jansson gives Stockholm a nocturnal identity thanks to its deep blues, where the lights of the shore and their reflections punctuate the urban space.
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#50
Wave VII
The wave and the sky are worked in thick masses, almost without a stable horizon; Strindberg makes the storm a projection of inner uncertainty. Strindberg works on painting like his stories: the sea, the sky and the matter becomes the agents of an inner conflict more than the description of a place.
See this reproduction →Raptors, seabirds, foxes and winter landscapes make up a world governed by camouflage, waiting and movement.
#51
Sea eagles
In "Sea Eagles", the raptor is captured as a force of the environment: its flight, its waiting or its attack regulates the entire composition. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#52
Eagle and Hare
In "Eagle and Hare", the raptor is captured as a force in the environment: its flight, its waiting or its attack regulates the entire composition. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#53
Nighttime atmosphere with wild ducks
"Night atmosphere with wild ducks" observes the group, the flight or the immobility with a precision which avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#54
black grouse arena
"lyre grouse arena" observes the group, flight or immobility with a precision that avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#55
Around woodpigeons and squirrels
In "Around the woodpigeons and squirrel", the raptor is captured as a force of the environment: its flight, its waiting or its attack regulates the entire composition. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#56
Woodcock
"Wood Woodcock" observes the group, the flight or the immobility with a precision which avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#57
Mallards taking off
"Mallards taking off" observes the group, the flight or the immobility with a precision which avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#58
Long-tailed ducks in the outer archipelago
"Long-tailed ducks in the outer archipelago" observes the group, flight or immobility with a precision that avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#59
Bear hunting
"Bear hunting" makes the landscape an active habitat: light, season and relief determine animal behavior as much as the subject himself. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#60
Cat hunting birds
In "Cat Hunting Birds", the predator almost merges with vegetation or snow; the eye must spot the animal before understanding the action. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#61
Cat in a flowery meadow
In "Cat in a Flowering Meadow", the predator almost merges with vegetation or snow; the eye must spot the animal before understanding the action. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#62
Deer in the summer greenery
"Dertain in the summer greenery" makes the landscape an active habitat: light, season and relief determine animal behavior as much as the subject himself. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#63
White tree tops in winter with black grouse
"White tree tops in winter with black grouse" observes the group, flight or immobility with a precision that avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#64
A couple of flying eiders
"A couple of flying eiders" observes the group, the flight or the immobility with a precision which avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#65
A moose crossing a swamp in Sweden
"A moose crossing a marsh in Sweden" makes the landscape an active habitat: light, season and relief determine animal behavior as much as the subject itself. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#66
A family of moose enters a clearing
"A family of moose enters a clearing" makes the landscape an active habitat: light, season and relief determine animal behavior as much as the subject himself. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#67
An eagle owl
In "An eagle owl", the raptor is captured as a force in the environment: its flight, its waiting or its attack regulates the entire composition. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#68
Sea eagle's nest
In "Sea Eagle's Nest", the raptor is captured as a force in the environment: its flight, its waiting or its attack regulates the entire composition. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#69
Wild geese in the field
"Wild geese in the field" observes the group, flight or immobility with a precision that avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#70
Partridge with daisies
"Wormworm with daisies" observes the group, flight or immobility with a precision that avoids zoological illustration and restores the rhythm of the environment. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#71
Seal on an islet at sunset
"Seal on an islet at sunset" makes the landscape an active habitat: light, season and relief determine animal behavior as much as the subject himself. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#72
Portrait of Ernest Thiel
"Portrait of Ernest Thiel" makes the landscape an active habitat: light, season and relief determine animal behavior as much as the subject itself. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#73
Fox with his cubs
In "Fox with its young", the predator almost merges with vegetation or snow; the eye must spot the animal before understanding the action. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#74
Fox under a pine branch
In "Fox under a pine branch", the predator almost merges with vegetation or snow; the eye must spot the animal before understanding the action. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#75
Fir trees loaded with snow
"Fir trees laden with snow" makes the landscape an active habitat: light, season and relief determine animal behavior as much as the subject himself. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#76
Swans by the shore
In "Swan by the Shore", the opposition of black and white becomes a process of division, mirroring then reunification, over the course of a series devoted to polarities. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
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#77
Pine trunks after sunset
"Pine trunks after sunset" makes the landscape an active habitat: light, season and relief determine animal behavior as much as the subject himself. Liljefors observes the animal in its environment: plumage, coat, snow, reeds and rocks make up the same field of camouflage, waiting and survival.
See this reproduction →Cycles of life, swans, doves and altarpieces form a pictorial cosmology thought of well before the public recognition of the artist.
#78
The ten greatest, n° 1, Childhood
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 1, Childhood", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#79
The ten greatest, n° 2, Childhood
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 2, Childhood", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#80
The ten greatest, n° 3, Youth
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 3, Youth", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#81
The ten greatest, n° 4, Youth
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 4, Youth", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#82
The ten greatest, n° 5, adulthood
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 5, adulthood", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#83
The ten greatest, n° 6
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 6", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, geometric colors and shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#84
The ten greatest, n° 7, adulthood
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 7, adulthood", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#85
The ten greatest, n° 8, adulthood
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 8, adulthood", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#86
The ten greatest, n° 9, Old age
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 9, Old Age", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#87
The ten greatest, n° 10, Old age
In "The Ten Greatest, n° 10, Old Age", the enlarged forms follow a stage of human life; the monumental scale converts biological growth and spiritual maturation into an immersive experience. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#88
Altarpiece No. 1, group X (1907)
"Altarpiece No. 1, Group X (1907)" organizes signs, numbers and colors as elements of a personal cosmology intended for the Temple project imagined by Hilma af Klint. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and shapes geometrics belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#89
Primordial Chaos No. 2 (1906)
"Primordial Chaos No. 2 (1906)" organizes signs, numbers and colors as the elements of a personal cosmology intended for the Temple project imagined by Hilma af Klint. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#90
Tree of knowledge, n° 1
"Tree of Knowledge, n° 1" organizes signs, numbers and colors as the elements of a personal cosmology intended for the Temple project imagined by Hilma af Klint. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and shapes geometrics belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#91
Evolution No. 13, Group VI
"Evolution No. 13, Group VI" organizes signs, numbers and colors as the elements of a personal cosmology intended for the Temple project imagined by Hilma af Klint. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#92
Swan No. 1 (1915)
In "The Swan No. 1 (1915)", the opposition of black and white becomes a process of division, mirroring then reunification, over the course of a series devoted to polarities. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#93
Swan No. 10 (1915)
In "The Swan No. 10 (1915)", the opposition of black and white becomes a process of division, mirroring then reunification, over the course of a series devoted to polarities. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and shapes geometrics belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#94
Swan No. 17 (1915)
In "The Swan No. 17 (1915)", the opposition of black and white becomes a process of division, mirroring then reunification, over the course of a series devoted to polarities. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and shapes geometrics belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#95
Dove No. 1, group IX/UW
In "The Dove No. 1, group IX/UW", the dove is not illustrated literally: it becomes a principle of circulation between matter, spirit, color and geometry. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#96
La Colombe no. 13 (1915)
In "The Dove No. 13 (1915)", the dove is not illustrated literally: it becomes a principle of circulation between matter, spirit, color and geometry. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and geometric shapes belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
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#97
The Key to the Work to this point
"The Key to the Work to This Point" organizes signs, numbers and colors as elements of a personal cosmology intended for the Temple project imagined by Hilma af Klint. At af Klint, letters, spirals, colors and shapes geometrics belong to a symbolic system conceived as visual knowledge rather than as a decorative abstraction.
See this reproduction →The expressive line, the fawn color and the modern portrait close the journey on the tensions of the 20th century.
#98
The Dying Dandy
The dandy collapses before the eyes of an impassive group: the elegant line and acidic colors make this allegory of rejected love more cruel. Dardel mixes worldly elegance, decorative line and narrative cruelty; the scene seems light until the drama reveals its violence.
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#99
The Red Blind
The red of the blind not only closes the window: it invades the room and imposes its own emotional climate. Hjertén uses the free color inherited from Matisse to bring tension between domestic interior, feminine gaze and artist identity in modern Sweden.
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#100
Portrait of Sigrid Hjertén
Grünewald represents Hjertén shortly before their final return from Paris. The elegant pose and cold range signal the more classic turn of his painting after the 1920s, while the model retains the authority of an artist and not that of a simple muse.
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Landmarks in the corpus
The hundred works are paintings in the public domain. Each image and each button opens the corresponding Alpha Reproduction product page. Drawings, prints, sculptures and photographs have been excluded, and correspondences between title, image and link have been checked.
Modern light
Summer Ball - Anders ZornThe popular round of Dalarna becomes an image of community and summer weather.Breakfast Time - Hanna PauliThe open-air cover is dissolved by reflections of bold light for 1887.Frequently asked questions
Questions about Swedish painting
Some points of reference to situate Zorn's light, Larsson's home, Liljefors' animal and Hilma af Klint's abstraction.
What characterizes 19th century Swedish painting?
It develops between academic training, stays in Paris, observation of the territory and construction of a national imagination. The portrait, the landscape, rural life and history become laboratories of light and composition.
Why does Anders Zorn take center stage?
His mastery of light and water, his international success as a portraitist and his attention to the culture of Dalarna allow him to articulate cosmopolitan modernity and local identity without opposing them.
Did Carl Larsson even paint his family?
No. Sundborn's scenes shaped his fame, but Larsson also created portraits and vast historical settings. The Midwinter Sacrifice sums up this monumental ambition.
Why is Bruno Liljefors important?
He renews animal painting by observing species in their habitat. The animal is not isolated like a specimen: its visibility, movement and survival depend on the entire landscape.
What place does Hilma af Klint hold in the history of abstraction?
From 1906, she developed vast non-figurative cycles based on geometry, color and a complex spiritual system. A large part of this ensemble was intended for a Temple imagined by the artist.
Are the hundred works offered for reproduction?
Yes. The selected artists died before 1956 and the selected paintings belong to the public domain. Each image and button opens the corresponding product page.
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